Bubblegum Crisis: The Next Generation part 1
by Purple Knight Saber
Summary: It is the year 2054, and Yumeko Asagiri is just your average 16-year-old girl and the daughter of famous singer Priss Asagiri. After she gets attacked by a Boomer one night, she starts learning a lot more about her mother's friends than she ever thought.
1. Dream child

I wrote this story between January and March of 1999, when I was 15. My first attempt at a fanfiction, and the beginning of a saga that a lot of people seem to love...so lo and behold: Part 1 of Next Gen!

* * *

It is the year 2054 A.D. The Knight Sabers have long gone their separate ways, each of them trying to advance their own careers. With no Boomers on a rampage, they decided to call it quits just two years after the "Bubblegum Crash" era.

Sylia is still running her Silky Doll lingerie shop, which has been a huge hit in MegaTokyo and now has several chains throughout Japan. Linna has quit her job at Phoebe's and now has started her own acrobatics gym. Nene is no longer working for AD Police, since they were no longer needed after Boomers stopped coming out. She has instead decided to work alongside Sylia in her lingerie shop, and is actually having the time of her life.

And of course, who could forget about Priss.

Priss has decided to take another shot at a professional debut, and succeeded. After coming back from a world tour, she decided to take it easy for a while. That 'while' turned out to be three years when she suddenly gave birth to a baby girl. She refuses to name the father, and all that is known is that she was raped soon after coming home from her tour. Priss decided to keep the child, whom she named Yumeko (meaning "child of dreams").

And now, Yumeko is sixteen years old, and full of energy. She does not yet know who her mysterious father is, nor does she realize the dangers of being the child of a Knight Saber...

* * *

"Bubblegum Crisis - The Next Generation"

(apologies to the creators of Star Trek)

Written by Amanda Stair

* * *

I suppose I could be what people call a 'normal' teenager. I like hanging out, eating, and cruising around on my new motorcycle. I sleep in till noon when time allows it, and I occasionally cut classes when I don't feel like going to that particular class. Oh, and my mom's a singer too.

My mom, Priss Asagiri, is lead singer for a rock band called Priss and the Replicants. After performing in a nightclub called Hot Legs for a time, they decided to go pro, and boy did they ever!! By my count anyway, they've released four albums (every one of them going multi-platinum), and gone on three world tours. Mom says she does it because she enjoys it and "it's better than sitting behind a desk all day long like some of those half-wits out there."

Although Mom made it to the World Top 10, she and I don't live in a big, fancy mansion like some other famous people do. Instead, we live in a small apartment in District 6, where the rent is moderate and life is just, well...life.

"I don't like servants," she'd say whenever I asked her why we don't live in a mansion. "They make you into a damn invalid, doing every little thing for you and all. If I wanna do something, I'll just do it myself, thank you very much." She paused. "Besides, I want to feel human, not like some...queen on a pedestal having everyone at her beck and call."

In this day and age, it's hard to know what's human and what's not. There are humans and Boomers wandering the streets wherever you look. Boomers are basically mechanical humans, slaves to do what no one else will. Some would be pretty simple, just doing their job, whatever that would be, and nothing more. Others are so complex and advanced that they look and act just like humans. Back in the 2030's, there'd be Boomers whose circuits had gone haywire going around and destroying everything in its path. Mom would say the special police force created to destroy any Boomer that went nuts, the AD Police, weren't worth shit when it came to handling Boomers. They'd get slaughtered like so many flies. Then the Knight Sabers would step in and kill the Boomer as if it were nothing.

Mom said they appeared around 2031 and left the spotlight four years later, when Boomers rarely went on rampages anymore, and any that did could be handled even by ADP. From the way she talked about the Knight Sabers, you'd think she'd personally witnessed every fight they ever fought or something...

* * *

I heard someone knocking on the door. Groaning, I sat up in bed, rubbed my eyes, and looked at the clock. 8:21 A.M. I cursed under my breath and got dressed, pulling on some old, worn jeans and a blue sweatshirt. The knocking persisted and even my mom started groaning about the noise.

"I'm coming, already!" I yelled to the person on the other side of the door as I sprinted towards it. After opening the door, I saw a few reporters with some cameras. "Do you mind?" I snapped. "It's eight-thirty in the morning."

"Sorry," one of the reporters said, obviously not meaning it. "We have a few questions for your mother."

"She can't come to the door right at the moment."

"But we really need to talk to her," he persisted. "It's about her next album."

"Well," I said, "she needs her rest so she'll be able to perform well, doesn't she? And the more you come here at eight in the morning to pester her with questions, the longer it's gonna be before she releases it!! You got my drift?"

"But...we were just..."

I slammed the door in his face and went to the kitchen. I had just gotten myself some coffee when Mom came in. Her hair was rumpled from the rough night she had, and I though I saw circles under her eyes as well. That was becoming routine lately, as she had been working a lot in the past few weeks.

"Morning," she grumbled as she poured herself some coffee and sat down. "What'd they want now?"

"They wanted to ask you more questions about your next album."

"Figures. They still at the door?"

"No, I told them to bug off."

"Good," she said, brightening a little. "Reporters really piss me off. They're like moths drawn to a flame or something."

I nodded in agreement. It seemed that whenever Mom was going to be releasing an album or going on another tour, the reporters really were like moths drawn to a flame. They would never leave her alone, even though they knew perfectly well that it annoyed her more than almost anything. A few times, she almost punched a photographer because he wouldn't stop taking pictures of her.

"You don't look like you slept well," I pointed out.

"I didn't," she groaned. "I've been at the recording studio pretty late lately, and those reporters coming here early in the morning isn't helping my mood any, either." She took another sip of her coffee.

"Hey, you're not the only one who's not a morning person," I said, smiling.

"I see that," Mom said, also smiling.

We heard someone knock on the door again. Both Mom and I slapped our hands over our faces, not wanting to hear from any more reporters. I got up and stormed towards the door, ready to give them an earful, when I heard a cheery voice from the other side of the door.

"Anyone home?" I heard Aunt Nene call out happily. Nene isn't really my aunt, I just call her that because she and I are so close to one another. If I felt I couldn't talk to Mom about something, I would turn to Nene for advice, or less often, Aunt Linna or Sylia. I opened the door and let her in.

"Morning, Yumeko," she sang. She wasn't much shorter than I was, maybe two or three inches. Her lovely red hair framed her round face that flushed with happiness. Her green eyes were sparkling brightly even in the dim light of the apartment. She was dressed in a blue jacket with a white blouse under it, with a matching blue skirt. Her purse was swung over one shoulder. Even though she was approaching middle age, she still looked like she was only twenty or so. I'm sure Mom envied her for that.

"Hey Nene," I said. Nene turned to Mom, who was slugging down her coffee.

"Oh gee, is someone grumpy this morning?" Nene asked sarcastically.

"Sorry, but I can't get up at the break of dawn like Linna does," she said.

"Reporters came again," I mumbled.

"Again?" Nene asked. "My, aren't you the popular one, Priss."

"Oh, shut up," Mom spat.

"Well," Nene said, ignoring Mom, "I just came by to say hello, and to see how everyone is doing." She turned to me. "Oh Yumeko, I heard you finally got your license. How do you like finally being able to drive?"

"It's ok," I mumbled. "Better than walking everywhere, or taking the bus."

"True, true," Nene agreed. "Well, I gotta be going now. Sylia's really strict when it comes to being on time." She started for the door.

Mom spoke up. "Why the hell did you do that to your hair, Nene? It looks terrible." She was referring to Nene's new haircut. Originally, it had been long and flowing, practically as long as my mom's hair was. Now it was cut short, only coming down to the middle of her neck. It was attractive, but I preferred her with long hair.

"Doesn't matter if you don't like it, Priss," Nene shot back. "I happen to like it very much."

"Well good for you," Mom said sarcastically.

Stopping at the door, Nene turned to me and said, "Watch out for her attitude, Yumeko. I swear, if looks could kill..."

"I heard that," Mom yelled from the table, where she was downing another cup of coffee.

"Dontcha think I know that?" Nene called back. "Well, I'll be leaving now. Oh, and when you see Linna, tell her I said hi, ok?"

"Ok," I said. "See ya later, Aunt Nene."

"Stop calling me that," she said, annoyed but smiling at the same time. "It makes me feel...old."

"Well, you ARE forty, right? Sounds like old age to me," I joked.

"Oh ha ha."

"I thought it was funny," Mom said with amusement in her voice.

"Later, all," she sang out again as she left, leaving just Mom and I alone in our small apartment.

Mom stood up and went to our bedroom to get dressed. The apartment was a pretty small one, with only two so-called rooms: the living room/kitchen and a single bedroom, which she and I shared. Sure, sometimes it felt like living in a closet, but hey, it was home.

"Aw SHIT!!" she yelled as I heard her run around the bedroom frantically. Mom was hardly ever on time for anything, even when it involved her precious singing. She was supposed to be at the recording studio at 9 o'clock. It was 8:55 now.

"Gonna be late again, I'm guessing?" I inquired.

"You got that right!" she bellowed as she ran into the living room, dressed in her usual blue blouse, jeans, and red boots. She snatched her jacket off of the couch and yanked it on. "I think there's some stuff in the fridge you can fix up for lunch. If I'm not home by dinner, eat without me."

"You've been working late a lot lately, Mom. Maybe you should take a day off," I suggested.

"Believe me, I wish I could, but the damn recording company won't let me have one for some reason," she complained as she headed for the door. "Well, I gotta run. Later, Yume." That was her nickname for me instead of just calling me Yumeko.

"Later Mom," I said as she closed the door behind her. I looked out the window, down at the front door to the apartment building. Sure enough, there was a horde of reporters waiting for her to come out. Once she did, they immediately surrounded her, not leaving her in peace as she walked to her motorcycle, put on her helmet, and started up her bike.

I sighed to myself, thinking, _being a celebrity isn't all some people think it to be, is it? _Looking out the window still, I saw Mom take off down the street, the reporters trying in vain to catch up to her on foot.

_Ah, the start of another lovely day, _I thought sarcastically.

* * *

I sped down the highway on my bike, heading nowhere in particular, but just for the fun of it. I loved just cruising around town, not a care in the world. Except, of course, getting pulled over for speeding, but I didn't really care about that. Right now, I felt nothing could spoil my day, not a rotten ticket, not even being chased by reporters.

Deciding to stop for a rest, I pulled over. Yanking off my helmet, I just sat back, closed my eyes, and let the cool wind play across my face. The peacefulness of the moment didn't last long, however, as I heard a motorcycle pull up next to me and stop. I opened my eyes and saw a large man climb off his bike.

"Didn't think I'd see you this early in the morning," he smirked.

"What do you want, Masahiro?" I growled.

"Hey, what's with the bad attitude, babe?" he asked, still smirking. "I know you're not the morning type, but hey, you're not usually this grouchy."

"I just don't feel like talking, that's all," I said, brushing him off. "Now if you'll excuse me..."

I headed back towards my bike, but Masahiro stepped in my way. He didn't scare me one bit, although it looked like he was twice the size I was.

"Why don't you come over to my place? There's more...privacy there." He grinned evilly. I was starting to get real pissed off.

"Get out of my way."

"Why should I, babe?"

"One, there's no way in hell that I'm gonna get into bed with a creep like you, and two, I'm not your babe! So move it!"

I started to walk around him, but then Masahiro grabbed me by the shoulders, stopping me in my tracks. He pulled me towards him and leaned down, as if trying to kiss me. "Don't you wanna have some fun?"

"Not your kind of fun, I know that."

"Just this once, babe. Give me a chance."

"Didn't you hear me the first time?!"

"Nope, I sure didn't."

I had first met Masahiro at Hot Legs, the club where my mom performed early in her career. He had seemed nice at the time, but after a while, I saw that all he wanted was to get me in bed and then dump me like an old pair of shoes. Other people had told me that he'd done that to several girls, and I wasn't about to become one of them.

"Would you let go?!"

"Come on, Yumeko," he whined. "You're the first girl that's meant anything to me, and I won't let some other guy come and snatch you away."

"That's what you've said to plenty of girls, I've heard," I snapped.

"Those bastards are just saying that cuz they want you for themselves. Now come on, let's go somewhere where we can be alone, shall we?" he asked.

"Wanna know what I think of that, Masahiro?" I asked, smiling innocently.

"What?"

I brought my knee up between Masahiro's legs, making him double over in pain. He rolled on the ground, cursing me out. I simply continued towards my bike, pulling on my helmet as he yelled, "You bitch! You don't know what you're missing!"

"I know perfectly what I'm missing," I called to him as I started up the bike. "I'm missing my first chance at a broken heart. Thanks, but no thanks." I roared off, leaving him still down on the ground and calling after me.

* * *

I walked into the apartment, worn out from the day's events. As if being woken up by reporters was bad enough, I had run into that bastard Masahiro, gotten a speeding ticket (again), and Aunt Linna had wanted me to lead her exercise class for a while when I'd stopped by there for a visit. I hated exercise, almost as much as cleaning, but Linna said she was busy with something else at the moment, and had insisted on me leading the class for an hour or two. I yanked off my biking gloves and laid back on the couch, just wanting to rest for a moment.

That hope didn't last long. I heard the door being thrust open and slammed shut as Mom cheered.

"Finally it's over!" she yelled as I opened my eyes and saw her standing there with a huge grin across her face.

"Hm?" I said tiredly. "What's over?"

"We finished recording today. Now hopefully those reporters'll stop pestering me," she sighed, running her hand through her hair.

"I wouldn't count on that anytime soon."

"True..."

I sighed as I remembered the incident with Masahiro earlier in the day.

"What's wrong, Yume?" Mom asked.

"That son of a bitch tried to make a pass at me again."

"Masahiro?" She snorted. "Reminds me of a certain guy I know."

I knew she was talking about Leon McNichol. Even though he and Mom had met over twenty years ago, he was always asking her to go on a date with him, despite the fact that she refused every time. She'd only 'go out' with him if she was out of cash, considering she knew that he'd foot the bill for the meal. But of course, since she went pro, Mom never needed to rely on Leon to get her meals anymore. It still didn't stop him from trying to ask her out, though.

"Doesn't Leon ever take a hint?" I asked.

"Obviously not," she grumbled. "So what happened with Masahiro?"

I told her everything, including the part where I had kneed him, smiling as I did so.

"I shoulda done that to Leon long ago," she smirked. "He was even so desperate at times that he'd ask Nene out. She never did, of course, the excuse being 'Oh, my mom doesn't like me staying out late.'" She chuckled at the memory. "Personally, I never did trust guys, knowing all they ever wanted was to get me in bed."

"But what about...?"

"What about what?"

"You said you used to be in a biker gang, didn't you?"

"He...he was different," she sighed, apparently not wanting to drag up bad memories like this one. "At...at the time, I needed someone to care for me, someone who'd listen to me when I had something important to say. No one did that in the orphanage, listen to me, I mean. The leader of that gang would listen, though. He was the only person I knew at the time that really cared about me. But of course, after he was killed...I didn't have anybody caring about me anymore. And that upset me, it really did...though at the time, I never would admit it to myself."

"And that's when you met Sylia, right?" I asked, remembering that she had told me about this before.

"Yeah. She helped me get over his death and continue with my singing. Hell, it was that gang leader that helped me land that job at Hot Legs in the first place." She sighed. "Knowing that, it was hard for me to continue with it at first, but then I realized that moping and crying wouldn't bring him back, and I had to move on. So I did."

"Sorry about bringing that up. You always did say you didn't like talking about those bad times."

"Hey, it's ok. I guess...I guess I got so caught up in talking about guys that..." She stopped. "Well, how'd your day go?"

"Well...I got a speeding ticket, Linna wanted me to lead her class for a while..."

"Doesn't surprise me," Mom interrupted. "After all, you're the daughter of Queen Speed Demon." Both Nene and Linna had called her that on numerous occasions, and she'd gotten used to being called by that name.

"So that makes me Princess Speed Demon," I laughed.

She laughed also. "I suppose it does, doesn't it?"

We were rudely interrupted by a pager beeping. Mom cursed and looked to see who was paging her.

"Damn, I forgot," she muttered as she started for the door.

"Wh...where are you going?" I asked, confused.

"I got an appointment with Sylia and the others. We're supposed to go to the gym for a while and work out."

"Every week though?"

"Yeah, it's a royal pain in the ass, but well...it's the only time we really get together anymore." She reached the door.

"Like I said, you should take a vacation," I pointed out.

"Well, now that I'm done recording for the new CD, I'll have plenty of vacation to take."

"You could use it."

Walking out the door, she turned and said, "Yeah, I could. I gotta jet, Yume. I'll see you later tonight, ok?"

"Ok," I sighed.

"Bye." She closed the door.

As I walked to my, or should I say OUR, bedroom, I kept thinking the same thing. It always seemed like every week, Mom, Nene, Linna, and Sylia would suddenly disappear and go to the gym for a few hours. Sure, I knew it did a person good to go and work out every now and then, but they did it so often, it was like a ritual. They never skipped a week or anything, except when Mom was on tour, but even then, they still went without her. And another thought hit me: what 'gym' were they going to? Whenever they went to the 'gym', they claimed, I would try and find out which one, just so I could bring Mom some dinner or something, but they never were at any of the ones I checked. _Just what in hell is going on with them?, _I wondered.

Trying to put those thoughts to rest, I searched through a stack of CDs until I found the one I was looking for: it was entitled _Priss and the Replicants: Anata Dake (Only You). _Putting it in the CD player, I selected the song I wanted, and sang along with it as it came on. And which song? Of course it was Mom's (supposedly) most popular song, _Konya wa Hurricane_, I was singing along to.

In the distance, as the music played on, I heard a motorcycle roar down the street.

* * *

I tossed and turned in my bed, trying to find a comfortable position to lay in. Damn, it was no use. I just couldn't get to sleep. Sure, I had rough nights every now and then, but this time, I don't know if it was the summer heat keeping me awake, or if it was the neighbors blasting their music again.

I turned over and looked at Mom's bed. Empty. _Dang, she's not home yet? _I thought. Ah, well. She was probably out having a good time with Linna and the others. But at two in the morning? Something didn't seem right. I got out of bed and got dressed, ready to go out looking for her. Hopefully, I wouldn't find her drunk in one of the many bars around here, like I'd done more than once. Sometimes she just partied a little too hard...but at least she didn't do certain things when she was drunk like Nene did. I laughed at the thought of catching Nene in one of her drunken stupors, dancing and stripping down to her birthday suit in front of a large crowd.

I knew of a bar where Mom might be hanging out at which wasn't too far away, so I decided to walk instead of using my bike. _Easier to drag her home this way_, I thought. After making a few shortcuts, which included cutting through some less-than-safe alleys and streets, I realized something didn't seem quite right...

I looked around, trying to find out why I felt so uneasy all of a sudden. I couldn't see much in the dim light of the alley, but I was sure no one had been following me, nor could I see anyone hiding behind a dumpster, possibly planning to ambush me. I sighed and walked on.

I was almost out of the alley when I heard footsteps behind me and spun around. Before me stood a tall, black-haired woman dressed in a long red coat. She said nothing, but just stood there, no emotion in her face.

"Who are you?" I demanded.

The mysterious woman just stood there, grinning.

"Have you been following me?" I asked, getting a little nervous at the way she was staring at me.

Suddenly, she started walking towards me, still grinning and saying nothing. I backed away, startled when I stumbled over a can. The woman continued to advance.

"Hey...wha...what the hell do you want?" I said, my voice shaky.

I got my answer. The woman held up her hand, and suddenly her nails grew to be five inches long, and glowing. _A Boomer!! _I screamed in my head. _No way!! This can't be happening!! _

The woman lunged at me and picked me up by my shirt, catching me off guard. I struggled to get free of her, but her iron grip held me fast. I punched her in the face in an effort to get away, but only ended up with a sore fist as I remembered that she wasn't exactly made of the same stuff people are.

_Oh God, this is it_, I thought as the Boomer raised her claws, ready to impale me. _What a way to go! Getting stabbed by a goddamn Boomer!!_

Just when I thought I was having my last moments on earth, a shot rang out. The Boomer's head exploded simultaneously as she dropped me. Her head was hit with several more shots as she fell to the ground, dead. My heart still racing, I stood up and stared at the Boomer's headless body. Then I looked up and saw Mom standing there, a smoking gun in hand, a stone-cold expression on her face.

"Wha...wha...Mom?" I said dumbfoundedly. I couldn't believe it!! My own mom had shot a Boomer dead and not even blinked!!

She looked down at the Boomer, mumbling to herself, "What the hell is a Combat Boomer doing out here? I thought they weren't being produced anymore..." She saw me and rushed over to my side. "Yume, you ok?"

"Uh...y-yeah..." I said, still trembling all over. "How'd you do that?"

"Do what?" she asked. "Oh, kill that Boomer, you mean? Well, I've done that more than once before. Of course, I didn't think I'd have to do it again so soon..."

"You could've gotten killed saving me from that thing!"

"You have any idea how many times I've been told that?" she smirked. "And besides, what are you doing out here at this time of night?"

"Looking for you."

"You didn't need to do that. I was just on my way home when I heard you screaming and well..."

Suddenly a thought struck me. She had killed Boomers before? But...but how? She couldn't possibly have done that before unless...unless she had been in the AD Police, or unless she had...

I gasped.

"What's wrong, Yume?" she asked.

"You...said you'd killed Boomers before, right?"

"Yeah."

"But the only way you coulda done that was if you were in the ADP, and you said you hated the ADP, so that means..." I stopped.

Mom sighed, as if she'd been expecting something like this to come up. She just stood there, looking at me, and then made the most astonishing revelation I was to hear from her yet.

"You're right. No ordinary citizen could just take out a Boomer, especially a Combat Boomer, just like that. No, I wasn't in the ADP...not like they could take out Boomers easily anyway. But I was part of another group, a group that could handle them more easily than the ADP ever could."

I held my breath, about to hear what I thought I'd never hear from her.

"Yume...I was a member of the Knight Sabers."

* * *

I waited for her reaction to what I'd just said. Didn't seem like Yume was gonna do much else besides stand there and look at me as if I was crazy. Couldn't blame her, exactly. After all, not every teenage girl has a Knight Saber for a mom...

Finally, Yume spoke.

"You...you're kidding, right?"

I sighed. "Nope, I'm not kidding. I used to be a Knight Saber."

"I...I didn't think YOU'D be one of them!" she exclaimed. "I mean...how...?"

"Looks like I've got some explaining to do..." I started walking towards my bike. "Come on. Let's go."

Yume just stood there. "Where...where are we going, Mom? Home?"

"Nah. I'm gonna take you to someone who can explain everything better than I can." I got on and pulled on my helmet.

I heard her mutter to herself, "I don't believe this..."

"You better believe it, Yume," I said, turning to her as she got on. "No use denying it. You'll just be harder on yourself if you try to do that. Take it from someone who's been there."

We rode down the street in total silence, each of us alone with our own thoughts. I knew I'd have to break this to Yume someday...just didn't think it'd be so soon. Oh well, like Linna would say, 'no time like the present.'

"I don't get it," Yume yelled over the roar of the motorcycle, "That Boomer back there...it just attacked me for no reason at all!!"

"No it didn't," I yelled back.

"What?! It didn't?"

"Boomers don't attack without reason unless their circuits got screwed up. That Boomer you encountered...I've seen Boomers like her before," I shouted, flashing back to when Linna's friend Irene had been killed. All I'd been told was that a female Boomer was after Linna and Irene, and that I had to stop it from hurting them. By the time I'd arrived though, the bitch had already killed Irene. I never did like seeing people get hurt, and Linna managed to keep me from going after the Boomer alone. I got angry just remembering that scene, Linna holding Irene's body while the Boomer drove away with no one following her...

Yume snapped me out of it. "Mom, you ok?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah..."

"So why did that Boomer come after me?"

"I don't think it was after you."

"Ok, then try explaining why it almost slit my throat back there!" she snapped.

"I think it was after me," I admitted.

Yume almost laughed out loud. "You? No one knew you were a Knight Saber though!!"

I didn't respond.

"Uh...right?" she said hesitantly.

We pulled up in front of the Lady 633 building, where Sylia still lived.

"Hey, this is where Aunt Sylia's apartment is," she said.

"Right. Let's go," I said.

"W-wait," she said nervously. "Are you saying that...that Sylia is...?"

"Is...?" I smirked.

"Oh no. No way. Sylia can't be a Knight Saber too!! No way!!" she yelled.

"Come on," I urged gently, pulling her up the stairs.

"Sylia, she...she doesn't look like she could harm a fly!"

"Welllll..." I drawled. "She's done more than just harm a fly, I'll give you that."

"I don't believe this!!" she said again as we reached the front door to Sylia's place. I knocked on the door.

"Mom, it's pretty late. I don't think she's up right now."

"She's up."

"How do you know?"

"The light's on."

"Oh...under the door...duh." She smacked her head, making me smirk. Then, I heard someone on the other side of the door get up and walk towards it.

"Who is it?" I heard Sylia ask politely.

"Just me," I responded. Sylia opened the door.

"I was just about to call you."

"Huh? Why's that?"

She suddenly noticed Yume standing next to me. "Priss, why is Yumeko with you?"

"That's what I came here for. She needs to know some things about...you know..."

"Oh, I see." She stood back to let us enter her penthouse. "Come in, won't you." Yume and I did so, and were surprised to see that we weren't the only company that Sylia had.

"Hey! Linna! Nene!" Yume exclaimed.

"Hi," Nene said.

"Out a little late, aren't we," Linna pointed out. We all sat down.

"Well, before I explain why you're here, Linna, Nene, Priss says that Yumeko wants to...know a few things," Sylia said, setting a coffee tray down on the table. "Do you want to tell her, or should I?"

"Um, what would you like to know, Yumeko?" Nene asked nervously.

Yume just sat there, nursing her cup of coffee. "W...well, Mom told me that she used to be...a Knight Saber."

Nene nodded. "So she did."

"You...you mean you knew already?" Yume asked, shocked.

"Of course we did," Linna said. "Nene and I were the other two Knight Sabers, after all."

I didn't think it was possible for Yume to pale any further than she already had, but she did, turning stark white. Damn, looked like a vampire had sucked all her blood or something like that. I snickered. Couldn't help it.

"This must be a lot for you to take in, I'm sure," Sylia said. "Well, Yumeko, when did Priss tell you this?"

"Just a little while ago, after she saved me from this Boomer—"

"A Boomer?!" Nene yelled. "A Boomer attacked you!?"

"Yeah...this female one. She just about gutted me when Mom came and shot its head off."

"Yup, that's Priss for ya," Nene joked. I frowned at her.

"She had these huge nails that looked like knives, and she just came after me, and I hadn't even done anything to her!"

I heard Linna sigh. "Just like the one that murdered Irene..."

"That was a while ago, huh?" Nene asked. "Twenty-two years it's been, if I remember right..." Linna nodded.

"What were you doing out this late at night, Yumeko?" Sylia asked.

"Goddammit, is everyone gonna ask me that or what?!" Yume snapped.

"No, we're only asking because we're concerned about you," Sylia said coolly.

Yume snorted. "I was looking for Mom, cuz she wasn't home yet and I was worried about her, that's all."

"Isn't that sweet!" Nene exclaimed.

"So Sylia," I said, "why's everyone here?"

"Well," she began, "as you all know, I've been monitoring Genom's movements for some time now. But just a few days ago, I found out something."

"What's that?" Linna asked.

"Genom is starting to manufacture Combat Boomers again. For what purpose, I don't know, but they are up to something."

"But why would Genom wait so long to start making Combat Boomers again?" Nene asked.

"Well, as you know, Genom's had more than its fair share of financial problems these past two decades," Sylia explained. "The Gulf & Bradley company suing over a 'breach of contract', among others. But it seems like they're past all that now, and they want to pick things up where they left off."

"There's no AD Police now though!" Nene yelled. "What's everyone gonna do if Genom sends out more Boomers to wreck the city like they've done so many times? It's not like the Knight Sabers can miraculously come back into existence or something!!"

Sylia smiled slyly. Apparently Nene got unnerved by that. "R...right?"

"Why do you think we've continued our training for all this time?" Sylia asked coyly. "We had to keep in top shape in case Genom tried anything. But of course, to wait this long...it shocked me as well."

Linna's jaw dropped. "You mean we're going back to work?"

Nene laughed. "But aren't we a little...too OLD to be doing this anymore? Having a bunch of middle-aged women come out of 'retirement' to fight Boomers again is like old man Quincy trying to run a marathon."

"I've thought about that," Sylia said, obviously trying to keep from laughing. Too late for Linna and me. We were already laughing so hard our sides hurt. "That's why I believe we could use some extra help. Some youthful energy to help us get the job done." She looked over at Yume, who was staring in shock.

"You...you mean you...want me to join...?" she stuttered.

"Well, Genom is bound to have even tougher Boomers than before. That would require more manpower to defeat them," Sylia said.

"But...I'm a little..."

"Young?" Nene asked. "Don't worry, Yumeko. I was your age when I first joined the Knight Sabers."

"You...you were?"

"Uh-huh. Enjoyed every minute too."

I burst out laughing. "Enjoyed?? You enjoyed getting beat up every battle?" I asked mockingly.

"That's not what I meant!!"

"Well, you WERE," Linna added.

"I meant that...I really liked helping make the city safer for everyone. The battles were fun, even though we sometimes got beat up. And we saved MegaTokyo from getting blown to smithereens a few times, right?"

"Yeah."

"Like when we fought the D.D."

I spit out my coffee in surprise. Nene turned to me.

"Uh.. you ok, Priss?"

"Oh, dandy," I coughed.

"I...guess that's still a sensitive subject for you, huh."

"What are you guys talking about?" Yume asked. "What's a sensitive subject?"

"Priss'll tell you about it later," Linna said.

"S-sure," I said. I'd wanted to keep the memories of that long-ago battle dead and buried, but Nene had just torn the scab off the wound. Killing a dear friend in order to save the city had been one of the last things I'd imagined I'd have to do, but I did it, although hesitantly. I relived the moment in my head for the thousandth time as Nene kept apologizing for mentioning it.

"Look, I...didn't mean to bring it up. Really."

"Well," Sylia sighed, "perhaps we should call it a night. We can talk more another time. In the meantime, Yumeko, I'll let you think about whether or not you'd like to join us."

"Um...ok," Yume said.

As Yume and I rode back to our apartment, she asked lots of questions. Why didn't I like talking about the D.D.? Were we sure about starting up again? What would we do if one of us were hurt? Or killed? Why didn't I answer her when she asked if anyone knew I was a Knight Saber? I told her I'd explain it all soon, but just not now.

Now wasn't a good time.


	2. Initiation

* * *

What a night it had been.

Who woulda thought that just by going out to look for Mom, I'd be attacked by a Boomer, find out Mom was a Knight Saber, and be asked to join the group all in one night?! Even though it'd been a few weeks since I found out about Linna and the others being the Knight Sabers, I was still in shock over it. The invitation to join them shocked me even more. My mind spun as I thought about what to do now. Should I join the Sabers, or should I just sit idly by and watch as they went out and risked their lives to save the city from rampaging Boomers?

"You don't have to give her an answer right away, you know," Mom said, interrupting my thoughts. "Take your time and think it through."

"I...I just don't know what to do," I said. "This is just so weird, all of this."

"Hey, when I first joined the Sabers, I thought so too. But I suppose killing Boomers was one way I could get back at Genom for what they'd done to wreck my life. I'm still not quite done with them yet..."

"So what about these eleven rules Sylia was talking about?"

"She had those set up at the beginning so she would be able to trust each of us fully. They're not really good for anything these days though."

"Isn't the last one a little harsh though? 'Violation of any of the rules listed above is punishable by death.' What was that about?"

"Like I said...she wanted to make sure she could trust all of us with keeping the group a secret. If any of us violated the rules, we'd be killed." She laughed. "Once she got to know us a little better though, she let up on her grip on the rules. Don't be surprised if she's a little firm with you at the beginning. She wants to be sure you won't go out and tell everyone about this."

"Of...of course I wouldn't."

"I know you won't. I've known you long enough to know that you wouldn't do that."

"It's a pretty dangerous job though, isn't it? Going out and killing Boomers?"

"Yeah it is. Don't always come out of the fights unscathed, but no one expects you to, either. I had my share of getting trashed..."

Mom rolled up the sleeves on her shirt. I don't know why I hadn't really noticed before, but her arms had several little scars on them, and others that weren't so little. I noticed a large one on her right arm, about three inches long. The exact same scar was on the other side of her arm too, as if she'd be stabbed through her arm. I said so.

"Got that one in one of our later battles. This one Boomer, he tosses me to the ground, fires these huge knife-things from his head, and three of them hit me. One goes through my arm, and the other two each go through a leg." Mom pulled off her jeans and showed me where they hit. I saw the scars, almost identical to the one on her arm, on each of her thighs. I grimaced, trying to imagine how much that must have hurt.

"Nene and Linna were freaking out, thinking I was a goner for sure. Boy, wish I coulda seen the looks on their faces when I yanked those blades out and continued fighting." She smiled at the thought.

"That...that won't happen to me, will it?"

"Not if you watch your back, it won't. I was too busy trying to get the Boomers away from Linna to see that other one coming." She yanked her jeans back on. "Just gotta be careful, that's all."

I sighed. "As dangerous and crazy as this all sounds," I said, "I can't just let you and Sylia and the others just go out there and put your lives on the line."

"What are you getting at?"

"I'm saying that even though there's a lot of risks involved in this, I want to join you guys and help you put these bastards down."

Mom just stood there looking at me for a minute, a skeptical look in her eyes. Then, she smiled. And said, "Well Yume, you've got your work cut out for you, ya know. But, if you really want to do this, I'm not gonna stop you."

"I do. I do want to do this."

"Well then...welcome to the club."

* * *

"All right, let's see you hit the bullseye," Sylia said.

It was my first day of training. We were all at a local shooting range, practicing our aim. Mom and Linna had both done pretty well, but Nene barely hit the target itself once, spawning several jokes from them.

"Maybe Little Miss Cyberpunk should spend less time on the computer terminal and more time at the shooting range improving her aim," Linna joked.

"Hmph. You weren't exactly stellar either," Nene shot back.

"You couldn't have been worse if you had a blindfold on!! And you know what the sad thing is? Priss has been giving you lessons."

"You trying to say something?" Mom inquired suspiciously.

"Uh…no, of course not."

"Could you all be quiet so I can concentrate?!" I yelled.

"Oh, uh, sorry Yumeko," Nene apologized.

I aimed the gun at the target, trying to stop my arms from shaking as I did so. If there weren't so many people watching me, maybe I wouldn't have been so nervous. Hopefully I wouldn't do as bad as Nene did. I tried to hold in a laugh at the thought as Sylia pointed out my mistakes.

"Stand up straight," she ordered. I straightened up and aimed again.

"Straighten your arms," Mom advised. I did so and tried to concentrate on the target again.

"Try not to listen to anything we say behind your back," Nene said.

"I can't concentrate if you're all talking, now can I?!" I snapped. Mom took the gun from me.

"Let me show you how it's done," Mom smirked. She took her stance, aimed the gun at the target, and fired. Nene gasped as she fired again and again, hitting the bullseye with deadly accuracy. She handed the gun back to me. "Now that's how a pro should do it."

"Show-off," Nene mumbled.

"Um...ok," I swallowed. I aimed once again at the target, straightened out my arms and standing up straight as they'd told me to do. I took a deep breath, focused carefully on the red area that was the bullseye...

And squeezed the trigger. Nene's jaw dropped.

"You...hit it on the first try...?" she whispered.

"Oh I did?" I joked. "Well, look at that."

"Do it again," Sylia said. I did so, hitting the red area a few more times, and most of the bullets that didn't hit it were right outside of it, more or less.

"You sure this is your first time using a gun?" Nene asked, skeptical.

"Like mother, like daughter," Linna said.

"That was pretty good," Mom said.

"So is there any more training I have to do?" I asked.

"Of course there is," Sylia answered. "We need to test your combat skills. That way, we'll be able to figure out what kind of weapons you'll have."

"Fine by me."

"All right then. We'll meet at Raven's Garage in half an hour."

We all walked out to our vehicles. As I was pulling on my helmet, Nene walked up to me, looking green with envy. I suppressed a laugh as she spoke.

"That was a lucky shot. Bet you couldn't do it again."

"Try me," I smirked.

"Oh..." She smiled. "I can't stay mad at you, Yumeko. You're such a sweet girl, you know that? If I were to have a daughter, I'd want her to be just like you."

"If you can hang on to a boyfriend that long, anyway," Mom quipped.

"You stay out of this," Nene snapped. Mom ignored her and drove away.

"We better get going if we don't wanna be late, Nene."

"All right." She paused and thought for a moment. "Um, could I get a ride with you?"

"Why?"

"My scooter broke down and I ended up walking here."

"I'll lend you my helmet if you want."

"No, that's ok. You need it more than I do." She climbed onto the bike behind me, wrapped her arms around my waist, and we were off.

* * *

Nene and I arrived at Raven's Garage right on schedule. As we hopped off my bike, we saw Mackie crawl out from underneath a truck and smile at us.

"Hi guys," he said.

"Hi Mackie," Nene and I said simultaneously.

"Sis and the others are already here. They're waiting for you inside."

"Ok," Nene said. "Do you know how Yumeko drives? She's crazy on that bike of hers!!"

"Just like another speed demon I know," Mackie smirked.

"Just because Mom likes driving fast doesn't mean she's crazy," I said.

"Sure seems like it at times, don't it," Mackie mumbled as he crawled back under the truck. I frowned.

"Come on, Yumeko," Nene said as she pulled me by the arm towards a back door. "Just ignore the stuff he says if it bugs you so much."

I sighed and let her take me into a changing room. She handed me a strange looking outfit and told me to put it on.

"What's it for?" I asked, puzzled.

"It's for the exercises we do. Oh, and you can't wear bras or anything under it either." She started to take off her clothes.

"W...why not?"

"Just can't. I dunno why." Nene finished putting on the outfit and I saw that it was skintight, showing off her lovely figure. As I started taking off my clothes as well, she said, "Oh, and before I forget...make sure Mackie doesn't have any hidden cameras in here either. He does that sometimes."

"Pervert," I muttered.

"Yeah. He just can't enough of seeing us undress. He used to try to watch us undress and put on our innerwear that we wear under our suits. We'd always catch him before he saw anything though. Ok...maybe not ALL the time, but still..." I fastened the back of the outfit and looked myself over. How strange. It all seemed like something out of a futuristic sci-fi movie to me. I shook my head in disbelief and tied back my hair.

"Hurry up," Nene urged as she walked to the training room.

"Ok!!" I called as I ran to catch up with her.

* * *

Nene and I walked in just in time to see Mom fighting a sort of hologram behind a glass screen. Before now, I hadn't realized how skilled she was in fighting, but now I had a chance to see her in her true colors.

She darted a holographic tentacle as it lashed out at her. She ducked another one and let out a swift kick, hitting the hologram in the middle. It vanished into thin air as Mom stood back to catch her breath.

"Here comes another one, Priss!" Linna said as another hologram appeared in front of her. I walked over to the terminal where she and Sylia were watching Mom fight.

"THIS is how you test our combat skills?" I asked incredulously.

"What, were you expecting a punching bag?" Linna joked.

"Yes, this is how I test how agile you all are," Sylia said. "There are several different levels that I test you at to see how well you can do in a real fight. I'll start you off at Level One and then we'll see how far you'll get."

"What level is everyone on?" I asked.

"Right now, Priss is at Level Eight, Nene is at Level Six, and Linna is at Level Ten."

"What about you?"

"She doesn't do these exercises," Nene cut in.

"Of course she does," Linna said. "We all do."

We were interrupted by a beeping noise. Turning around, we saw that Mom had just 'finished off' the last hologram.

"How was that, Sylia?" she asked.

"Well done, Priss," Sylia spoke into the intercom so Mom could hear inside the fighting room. "Reflex speed: 8.3. Later, we'll try you out at Level Nine and see how you do."

"That's...pretty good, isn't it?" I said. Sylia turned to me and smiled.

"Your turn, Yumeko."

"M...my turn? But Linna and Nene haven't had theirs yet."

"It doesn't matter what order you go in, so long as you go. It won't help you if you watch everyone else do well, because then you'll be more nervous by the time it's your turn, am I right?"

"I...guess so..."

Nene gave me a gentle shove towards the door that led into the fighting room, which Mom was just now walking out of. "Go on. You can do it. Heck, considering you were on the gymnastics team in school, you might get even farther than me."

"I don't know if I can get all the way up to Level Six though..."

"You know what Sylia told me a while back when I was stuck on Level Five? She said 'Even a normal girl can clear Level Five.' So I'm pretty sure you can do it, Yumeko."

"Somehow, that doesn't make me feel any better."

Mom walked up to me. "Don't worry about it. Anyone can do better than Nene."

Nene spun around on her. "Why you—"

"Hey, stop it now," Linna said. "Yumeko, you gonna go or not?"

"Yeah, I guess so."

I walked into the fighting room and closed the door behind me. Walking to the opposite side of the room, I stood and waited for Sylia's instructions. _Don't worry, it's just a hologram_, I thought. _It can't hurt me or anything. It's not the end of the world if I can't even get past Level One or anything._

"Can you hear me, Yumeko?" I heard Sylia say over the intercom.

"Yeah."

"Good. Now listen to my instructions. You will have three minutes to complete this level. During that time, three holograms will appear. The object is to destroy the holograms by hitting it in the middle by any means possible. You will face one hologram at a time. If you manage to defeat the holograms before your time is up, I will tell you to stop. Then I will set it to the next level and you will try to destroy those holograms as well. For each level, you will always have three minutes to destroy the three holograms that appear. You fail a level by being hit by a holographic tentacle. Should that happen, that is the level on which you can fight and after a while, you will be asked to try that level again. Do you understand?"

"Yeah."

"All right then. Get ready."

I took a fighting stance and waited for the blue hologram to appear. Once it did, Sylia said "Go!"

_Oh, this is easy_, I thought as I managed to defeat the first hologram. _It's no different than being in a virtual reality game_. I dodged the hologram as it lashed out at me with its long tentacles. I defeated it by delivering a swift punch to its 'torso'. I quickly cleared Level One and Sylia proceeded to set me on Level Two. It was only a little harder than the first level, but I didn't feel challenged. I saw Nene's eyes widen as I quickly advanced to Level Five, and did begin to feel a little challenged as the tentacles lashed out at me with almost twice the speed they did on Level Four. I dodged them again and did a back-handspring to dodge some others. I almost flunked the level when a long one reached out to me, as if to slap me across the face. I barely caught it in time and ducked it just as it swooped inches above my head. I destroyed it by doing a spinning kick.

"Wow! She's on Level Six already?" I heard Nene exclaim.

"And to think, you used to be stuck on Level Five for the longest time too," Mom teased.

"All right, Yumeko," Sylia said over the intercom. "You're doing very well. Keep up the good work."

I didn't.

Another tentacle managed to 'stab' me through the chest as I was about to take it out with a dashing punch. I was almost relieved that it was finally over. I leaned back against the wall, trying to catch my breath, wiping the sweat off my face as the door opened and Linna came running to me.

"Hey, you were great," she praised.

"You...think so?" I asked, still trying to get my breath back.

"You just got tired from getting through all those levels at the same time, that's all. Sylia will have you try again soon." She patted me on the back. "Great job."

"Thanks."

While I tried myself out on the arm strength tester, Nene and Linna had their turns fighting holograms. Linna passed Level Ten, much to Mom's disgust, while Nene struggled to pass Level Six. We all laughed out loud when she was 'stabbed' through the stomach by a tentacle.

"I don't see why you all have to make fun of me when I screw up," Nene scorned afterwards.

"Because we can't help ourselves," Linna admitted.

"Do tell."

"Well, I have the results of your training," Sylia announced, holding some papers in front of her. "Here's your results, Yumeko. Reflex speed: 7.5. Arm strength: 5.4. Leg strength: 6.6. Perception: 8.0. Very good job."

"That's better than me!" Nene said.

"Sure is," Linna added.

While Sylia went over Nene and Linna's results with them, I walked over to Mom, who was on the opposite side of the room as everyone else, a sorrowful expression on her face.

"Is there anything wrong, Mom?" I asked concernedly.

"N...no..." she said hesitantly. And looked away

"Did you see how I did? I got all the way to Level Six!"

"I saw that. I'm very proud of you, Yume."

"There's something you're hiding from me, isn't there."

"Of course not..."

"Is this about what Nene said a few weeks ago? About this D.D. thing?"

She didn't respond. The others walked over to us.

"Priss, you still sore over that?" Linna asked. "Look, I've lost friends myself. One of my best friends, in fact. And I've gotten over it. That was twenty-two years ago. Yes, I still miss Irene, but I've moved on with my life. I don't see why you still haven't gotten over Sylvie's death, even twenty-one years after that battle."

Mom snapped her head up, fire burning in her red-brown eyes. She moved towards Linna with amazing speed, as if she were going to attack her. But she didn't. Instead, she stopped just in front of her. I saw that tears were starting to well up in her eyes.

"How would you have liked to kill your best friend?!" Mom snapped. "After having to kill Sylvie in order to stop that damn D.D. from blowing the city sky-high, you're saying that I should just forget about it and move on?! How could you even SUGGEST such a thing?! She was more than a friend to me, Linna, MORE than just a friend!! She was like...almost like a sister to me." She wiped away the tears that started to flow down her cheeks. "Of COURSE I haven't gotten over it. Especially since Anri was killed almost right after Sylvie was. And I was the person that had to tell her that Sylvie was dead. I'm sure YOU didn't have to give anybody the news about Irene, now did you!!"

"Well..."

"No you didn't!! Sorry, but I'm not the happy, optimistic person that you are, Linna. I have a harder time getting over people dying that you do. You know how many people I've lost in my life?! More than my fair share, ok?!" Mom stopped to take a breath. Nene looked shaken at her outburst, and Sylia didn't look like she was about to stop her either. "'Scuse me...I have to get some air." She walked out of the room.

"Wh...what was that about?" I asked, breaking the uneasy silence that had gripped the room.

"Priss doesn't like talking about that battle," Nene sighed. "She doesn't like talking about the D.D. because that's the battlemover that Sylvie was fused to. Sylvie was a Boomer, but Priss didn't find that out until just before she died. In order to deactivate the micro-neutron bomb that was in the D.D., the pilot, who was fused with it, had to be killed. And that pilot was Sylvie. Even with only three minutes before it would have exploded, Priss couldn't bring herself to kill her. After she was knocked out by the D.D, the rest of us tried to take it out ourselves, but only after Sylia was almost crushed by it did Priss come to, blow off its arm, and attack it. Her Motoslave was destroyed by the D.D. while she was still inside it, but she managed to eject from it before it exploded. Then, she forced herself to shoot Sylvie. Priss never did really recover from it, going into a depression every now and then..."

"Priss should have been the one to tell her all that, Nene," Sylia said.

"I know, but...Yumeko had to know, and I know that she wouldn't have found it out from her mother anytime soon."

"I need to check on her," I said, starting to head for the door. Linna held me back.

"Leave her alone," she advised. "During times like this, it's best to let her be and figure out how to cope with it herself."

"Well," Sylia sighed, "soon it'll be time."

"Time? Time for what?" I inquired.

"The first battle, of course. We still need to get your suit built, but I think we'll be able to get that done before it's too late to do so. In the meantime, we'll work on a few more training sessions to improve your fighting skills, and then figure out what weapons will go on your suit."

"Ok."

After getting back into normal clothes (which was a relief for me, considering that 'measuring outfit' had made my body itch all over), I immediately ran out to the front to see if Mom was there. The only person I saw was Mackie.

"Priss? I don't know where she went," he said when I asked him where she was. "She just stormed out here, got on her bike, and took off. What happened?"

I didn't answer his question. Instead, I got on my own bike, not remembering that Nene would need a ride home, and took off myself. I expected her to be in one of the many bars in town, or at Hot Legs, but she wasn't in any of them, for when I asked the bartenders if she'd been there, they only said, "Nope, she hasn't been here in a while. Why, you lookin' for her?"

Finally, I gave up and went home, exhausted. As I stumbled into the small apartment, I saw Mom, laying on the couch. _And after I searched everywhere in town for her, too_, I thought. I decided to let her sleep, thinking she needed the rest after what had happened today. Just as I turned to walk into the kitchen to grab something to eat, something caught my eye. I turned back to Mom and noticed she held something in her hand. I gently took it out of her hand and looked at it. It was an old photo. In it, there was Mom and another girl with her at the beach. Mom was wearing her usual red biking leathers, but the other girl...I didn't recognize her. She had long brown hair and golden eyes, and wore blue, white, and yellow biking leathers. I turned the photo over and saw written on the back, in Mom's scribbly handwriting:

"21 February 2033...Sylvie and me at the beach"

Oh my. So that was the mysterious Sylvie. _Oh, Mom_, I thought. _How terrible for you to have to kill your best friend. I'm so sorry that I wasn't more sensitive about how you felt about it._

I placed the photo on the counter, where it would be safe. I looked back at Mom, who was still sleeping, and went to my room to be alone with my own thoughts.

* * *

"What's this?" I asked, pointing at the computer screen.

"I'm going to design your hardsuit now," Sylia said, "as well as your weapons. You've improved a lot over the past few weeks, so I think it's about time we do this."

"Ok."

Sylia started typing like crazy on the keyboard. A human figure appeared on the screen. She typed some more and some strange outlines started to surround the figure. Suddenly, the figure disappeared and then I saw what the outlines were: the hardsuit specs.

"This is what your hardsuit will look like," Sylia explained. "It will have several pairs of weapons, much like my suit. Each person has their own customized set of weapons that are designed for that particular person's abilities. You seem to be about average when it comes to hand-to-hand combat, but you're an excellent shot with a gun, so I gave you some weapons that can be used from a distance." She typed some more and then we got a close-up view of the right gauntlet. "This gauntlet will house most of your weapons. You will be able to fire regular shots from this gauntlet, which is why it is armored instead of just wearing a glove like you do on your left hand. You will also have a Knuckle Bomber on your right hand, a lasersword on both hands and the MDD on both as well."

"MDD?"

"You'll be able to fire electromagnetic discs using that. They will be able to slice through almost everything, much like Linna's ribbons. So if you fire some discs at a Boomer and they happen to miss, they'll just turn around and cut through it anyway, so you don't need to worry about wasting them. Oh -- and I'm sure you're curious about this -- once you get a lock on the target, the disc will only hit that designated target, so you won't have to worry over hitting anybody else."

I sighed relief. "How many will I have on each arm?"

"There are ten discs on each arm, so if you run out of discs on one arm, you'll be able to use the other one. Now on to some of your other weapons." She typed a bit more and then we saw a close-up of the shoulders.

"You mean I've got more weapons?"

"Of course. Now, on your shoulders, there will be some pulse-strikers. The armor on the shoulder lifts up and you will see a glow emanating from it. That 'glow' paralyzes Boomers so it will help you if you're not doing so good against it." I frowned. _Oh sure, rub it in_, I thought. "Don't use it too often though, as it will drain the power on your suit." We now got a close-up of the legs, which I noticed had lots of little bumps on the ankles. "Those are your Leg Bombers. When you kick a Boomer, there will be a slight explosion which will hopefully do great damage against it."

"Hopefully?"

"Well, if you kick it in the right place."

"So, is that everything?"

"Yes, it is. Now, I need to ask you what colors you'd like on your suit."

_Colors? I never thought she'd ask a simple question like that_, I thought. "I thought you chose the colors."

"No, I let the others choose them."

"Well, in that case...how about purple and black?"

"All right then."

"Ah yes, my daughter, the killing machine," I heard Mom say. Sylia and I spun around and saw her standing behind us, an amused smile on her face.

"M-Mom? When did you come in here?" I asked. "I didn't even hear you knock."

"I didn't."

"You want to see Yumeko's hardsuit, Priss?" Sylia asked. Mom walked over to us and gazed at the computer screen.

"Nice choice of weapons," she complimented. "Those Leg Bombers sure helped me out a whole lot, didn't they."

"Well," Sylia sighed, "I'll get to work on your hardsuit, Yumeko. Now don't be in a rush to get into battle, all right? You'll get your chance soon enough." She stood up. "And Priss, talk to Linna, won't you? She's said more than once that she's sorry she wasn't more sensitive about that." I knew she was talking about Sylvie and the D.D.

Mom looked away. "She shouldn't have mentioned it in the first place."

"Priss," Sylia said, "you don't get over events by trying to forget about them. You have to face them, deal with them, and move on."

"I've done that!" Mom snapped. "And look where it got me!"

"I'm sure you tried to forget about that attack, now haven't you."

Mom stopped dead in her tracks, a thousand emotions crossing her face as she thought of what to say. I hadn't really heard any details about that attack, except that I was conceived because of it. I didn't even know who it was that attacked Mom...she didn't want to say. She hadn't even told Nene or the others who it was that raped and beat her in that alley some seventeen years before, when she was still getting used to the thrills of being a world-class singer.

"Don't...don't...don't you bring that up!!" Mom stammered. "You know how...how horrible it was? To...to feel so...degraded after something like that happens? It was horrible!! You don't think I don't go a day without thinking about that night, about how humiliating it was to just be taken advantage of like that? It totally changed everything!! But," she said, looking at me, "at least something good came out of it, even if her father's a bastard."

"That's exactly what I'm talking about," Sylia said. "If you talk about it, you start to feel better, and deal with it more easily."

"You think that was easy, bringing that up?" Mom asked, dumbfounded.

"I didn't say that."

"I...I know you didn't. S-sorry, I'm just a little..."

"Worn out?" I finished for her.

"Yeah."

"Well," Sylia said, "I need to be alone for a while to work on Yumeko's hardsuit, so the two of you may leave if you wish."

"Ok," I said, Mom and I walking outside to our bikes. I looked at her as she pulled on her helmet, lost in her own thoughts. I sighed and asked, "So Sylvie was a good friend of yours, huh?"

Mom looked at me with surprise, as if she hadn't really expected me to ask that. "Y-yeah..."

"I'm sure you didn't want to kill her, huh. I wouldn't want to kill my best friend either, personally." We were now on the highway.

"That musta been the single worst moment of my life, besides that 'scuffle' in that alley."

"So who was this Anri girl that you brought up?"

"Anri...was a friend of Sylvie's. Sylvie had to use the D.D. to get blood from people to keep her alive, cuz she'd been injured during their escape from Genaros and couldn't survive without that blood. Then Sylvie stole this datadisc that would help Anri heal herself, but that, well...resulted in the D.D. threatening to blow Tokyo sky-high, and me having to kill her. She told me to give the disc to Anri, which I did. After that...that Largo bastard made Anri his aide or something. He told her I killed Sylvie in cold blood, but once she knew the truth, she didn't want to play any part in his schemes anymore. She...she sacrificed herself to save me from getting killed by him..." Mom stopped talking right there, emotion cracking her voice.

"Oh...how sad," I said sympathetically. No wonder Mom didn't like bringing either of them up. I'd always thought Mom hated Boomers to the guts, but now I saw that even though two of her best friends were Boomers, she still cared for them as if they were plain ol' humans. Amazing what the power of friendship could do...

* * *

_Damn that Linna, _I screamed in my head over and over again. She knew I didn't want to talk about the D.D., or Sylvie, or anything that even came close to them. She knew that!! But she just HAD to drag it up, didn't she. _I...I suppose she did have a point though, _I thought. _It has been over twenty years after all. But...but she didn't have to kill one of her friends, now did she!! _Little wonder that I was still sore over that...

Now that Yume had asked about Anri as well, that just dragged up even more memories. Felt like I was being dragged through hell a second time over. There was no escaping the past, was there.

"Mom, you feeling well?" Yume asked one morning when I didn't get out of bed. "You don't look so good."

"I'm fine," I groaned, sitting up. I'd dreamed about 'that night' again. The one where I was ambushed in 'that alley' seventeen years before. Musta been the one thing that I absolutely couldn't get over. After all, Yume came into being because of that. She was my daily reminder of that. Not that I loved her any less, though. I loved her all the more for it actually, because I was determined to make sure the same thing wouldn't happen to her.

"No you're not," she said stubbornly, sitting on the bed. "Ever since that training session, you've hardly even talked to me. You've just been sitting there, staring into space. Was it really that bad, that traumatic for you?"

"You try killing one of your friends and see how you feel afterwards," I said flatly as I climbed out of bed. Yume just shook her head as she watched me walk to the bathroom to take a shower.

_So what am I supposed to do now?, _I thought as I scrubbed myself off. _She's gonna eventually ask about her bastard-father. God dammit...it'll probably be harder on her than me if I tell her now. Maybe I should wait. Just a little longer. Then she'll be ready. _I sighed. _Hell, I couldn't even bring myself to tell Nene or the others who it was that attacked me...do I really think it's gonna be any easier breaking it to Yume?_

I heard someone knock on the door.

"I'll get it!" Yume called to me as I got out of the shower. Putting on my clothes and drying my hair, I walked out into the living room just in time to see Yume yelling at a familiar-looking guy.

"How many times do I have to repeat myself? No, no, and triple no!!" she yelled at Masahiro.

"Give me a chance, baby-doll. You know I ain't gonna leave you alone until you say yes," he said with a sly smile.

"Well, I don't give a shit, you hear me? You ain't never gonna get an answer, ya know," Yume snapped. Masahiro looked over her shoulder at me and waved.

"Hi, Ms. Asagiri. How ya doin'?"

"Fine. Don't ask for an autograph, cuz I ain't giving you one," I teased.

"Nah, I was just gonna ask you when your new CD is coming out."

"Next month. Now leave Yume alone before she knees you again," I said, smiling slyly.

"Anything for the great Priscilla Asagiri," he said sarcastically, doing a mock bow as Yume took a playful swing at him, missing.

"Priss, the name's Priss," I corrected as he left, Yume slamming the door. She turned around, smiling.

"I should have you as backup all the time, huh," she said, chuckling.

"From the way you acted with him, I'd say you have a little crush," I joked.

Yume turned four shades of red. "N...no way do I have a crush on that son of a bitch!!" She started to crack up. "Wouldn't that be a sight for sore eyes!! Me and Masahiro walking hand in hand down the street!! Ha ha!!"

Funny how this sort of stuff worked, because for the first time in weeks, I actually started to feel better. Musta been the sound of Yume's laughter. It was almost music to my ears, hearing that sound...

* * *

"Wow, someone's looking bright and cheery," Nene pointed out as Mom and I strolled into Sylia's apartment.

"Well, you'll need that attitude," Sylia said. I stopped in my tracks.

"W...why's that?" I questioned.

"You might get your first taste of action tonight, that's why." I gasped. A battle? A REAL battle?! My heart thumped. Oh, finally, finally I was gonna go out there and fight!! Oh, what a joyous occasion!! Wait...what was I talking about?? Joyous?? How could I be joyous about such a thing?

"You...you mean we're gonna fight Boomers?"

"Didn't you hear about it on the news?" Linna asked. "A Combat Boomer is over at District 15 tearing everything apart."

"Well, actually, no," I admitted grudgingly. "So, when do we go over and stop it?"

"My, aren't we enthusiastic," Nene said with a smile.

"For starters, when a Boomer is rampaging through the streets," Sylia said, "we sit back and wait for the police to handle it. And if they can't..."

"Which is 99 percent of the time..." Nene whispered with a laugh.

"...then we move in before it hurts any more people."

"Oh darn, so we're not going out right away?" I said, my face falling.

"If the police don't contain the Boomer soon anyway," Sylia replied.

"You don't have to go out with us if you don't feel you're ready, Yume," Mom said, putting her hand on my shoulder.

"I'm ready," I said. "As ready as I'll ever be."

"Well," Linna said with a chuckle, "you got farther than Nene did on the holographic simulator, that's for sure. So you'll be fine."

"Hey!!" Nene yelled, looking at her.

"Well, she reached Level Seven just a few weeks after first trying out the thing," Mom pointed out. "You've been a Knight Saber for years, and you're still only on Level Six!!"

"I wish you'd stop teasing me!!" Nene whined.

"It's the truth though," Linna added.

"Hmph. Don't need to remind me," she mumbled. Sylia turned up the volume on the TV so we all could hear it.

"--and now civilian casualties are estimated at about twenty. The Police are still struggling to stop the Boomer, and it is strongly advised that citizens stay indoors until it is contained." Sylia turned the TV off.

"All right," she said, standing up. "I think we've waited long enough. The police can't stop it, so I guess we'll have to do it ourselves."

"All RIGHT!!" Mom yelled, jumping up as well. "Let's go wipe that Boomer's ass all over the street!!"

"Don't need to be so vulgar, Priss," Nene muttered.

"So, uh...it's just one Boomer, right?" I asked nervously, suddenly not feeling so sure about going out to fight it anymore.

"Yes, it is," Sylia said. "You sure you don't want to reconsider?"

"Hey, you made that suit for me. I'm gonna use it!"

"All right then. Let's go."

* * *

"I still say we're too old to do this anymore!!" Nene complained as we changed into our innerwear.

"Ah, stop griping," Mom said as she fastened the back of hers. "Personally, I couldn't be happier we started up again. It was getting boring."

"What, singing and touring the world isn't enough action for you?" Nene asked with a note of heavy sarcasm.

As I fastened the back of my innerwear, I looked myself over. Geez, I couldn't believe this. I was actually going to go out and fight real live Combat Boomers!! Oh, I couldn't stop from shaking all over at the thought. And in front of me lay my purple and black hardsuit in all its glory, ready for entry. At my request, Sylia had made it so it looked a bit like Mom's, and I'd heard Linna crack a few jokes at that.

"You want racing stripes on your helmet, too?" Linna had joked. Of course my helmet didn't have them like Mom's did. Couldn't have us all looking exactly alike, now could we.

"Hey, you just gonna sit there all day and admire your suit?" Mom teased, snapping me out of my own little world. I looked at her and saw she was already in her hardsuit, sans helmet.

"Uh...no, of course I'm not!!" I took a deep breath, as if I was going to dive into a swimming pool. And I stepped into the suit. The armor on the legs and arms automatically folded itself so it closed over them. The chest armor swung down and snapped into place. Suddenly, I was a Knight Saber, armor and all. _Whoa, this is awesome!!, _I thought as I practiced walking around. Despite the high heels on the suit -- which Sylia said were for shock absorption -- I found it pretty easy to walk around. _Oooh, I'm gonna have fun with this!! _I practiced moving the mechanical hand on my right arm. It moved pretty much like my normal hand did. After checking everything over, I took my helmet and put it on. Instantly, all the systems automatically engaged, so now I could see everything, even though I had my visor down.

"Well, are we all ready?" Sylia asked as we all grouped, dressed in our hardsuits.

"Yeah," Nene said.

"I am," Linna replied.

"Same here," Mom said.

"And you, Yumeko? You ready for your first battle?" Linna asked.

"Um...sure," I said, voice shaking.

"Hey, it'll be ok," Nene said. "First battles are always the hardest ones to handle." She stopped and corrected herself. "Wait...even the later ones can be hard too."

"Oh, that helps," I groaned. Now I really wasn't sure if I was ready for this!! What if something went wrong? What if...oh, I had to stop asking all these questions to myself!!

"All right, everyone," Sylia said. "Let's get this show on the road."

* * *

When we all got to District 15, I gasped in shock. It was in total chaos. There were little fires everywhere, dead people laying in the street, cars smashed in...it was indescribable. Suddenly, I wasn't feeling so good; I felt like I was going to throw up on the spot. How was I gonna come out and fight Boomers if this was what I was going to see every time? And we would be facing the thing that did all this?? I shuddered at the thought of meeting it.

"Hey, we deal with Boomers that do this all the time," Mom said, as if she'd read my mind. "Don't worry."

"Don't worry?? That thing...that thing...it tore up the place, and you're telling me to not worry?" I panicked. I really was starting to regret having come along for this...

"Nene, scan for the Boomer," Sylia ordered.

"Ok!!" Nene said. She looked around, as if the Boomer would just pop out of nowhere. "I found it! It's just west of here, heading west on 6th Avenue."

"All right. Let's split up and try to get it from all sides," Sylia suggested. "Nene, you will come with me. Linna, you and Yumeko try to close in from the east. Priss, you come in from the south." We all nodded and split up, Linna and I taking a detour so we would meet up with the Boomer head-on.

"You sure you're ok with this?" Linna asked as we jetted towards the Boomer.

"Uh...s-s-sure I am. No time like the present, right?"

"I know it's your first battle, so just try and leave everything to me, ok?"

"No. I wanna try and get that thing myself. I can't just spend all the battles sitting at the sidelines, right?"

She chuckled. "Right."

I heard a warning signal start beeping in my helmet and turned to face ahead.

"Huh?" Suddenly, there it was, heading right for us. A looming bluish giant with glowing red eyes...and it looked pissed off. Here was my chance. I zoomed ahead of Linna, not heeding her pleas for me to stop.

"Ok, you bastard! It's you and me!" I yelled, making the lasersword on my right arm pop out at the same time. I drove it into its chest, still in flight as I did so. We both went crashing onto the ground, fluids gushing out of the Boomer's chest. I stood up, folding my flight wings down. _Wha...what was that?, _I thought. _Never thought I'd do THAT!! _The Boomer stood up to face me and suddenly, its chest seemed to open up. Heat cannons.

"Yume, get outta the way!!" I heard Mom yell over the communicator linked between our helmets. I turned and saw her slam into the Boomer with full force, firing her needles into it. The Boomer turned on Mom and fired its mouth cannon at her, missing as she moved towards it again, kicking it in the head with her Leg Bombers.

"You ok, Mom?" I asked when she stood back, breathing heavily.

"I'm fine!" she said, despite the fact that there was a gash in her leg. "Just worry about the Boomer!!" I saw it start to get up again, even with a missing head and a ripped-open chest. _Damn! Now I see why the police have a hard time killing these suckers!!, _I thought. _They just don't give up!! _

Linna arrived and immediately headed for the Boomer, doing a spinning jump over it, which sliced off parts of the Boomer's arms with her ribbons. _Where's Sylia and Nene?, _I wondered. _Shouldn't they have been here by now? _Oh well. I couldn't wait for them anymore. I decided to finish this thing off myself. As the Boomer flung away an advancing Linna and Mom both, I (semi)calmly aimed at the Boomer, making sure to get a lock on its torso, and fired, sending two little discs flying its way. The Boomer looked around, confused as the discs went sailing around and around it again. Then, they suddenly both turned and flew towards the Boomer, each approaching from a different side. They both cut into it with amazing speed, slicing it into several different pieces, artificial fluid spilling everywhere as it collapsed in a heap on the ground.

"You ok?" Linna asked, running to me. I just stood there, the adrenaline rush not having worn off just yet. That...that was almost easy!! Killing a Boomer!! Just like that. I burst into laughter. "Ah, the thrill of killing your first Boomer," she added dryly.

"That was awesome!!" I exclaimed. "I could do that every day!!"

"Well, we're not gonna fight Boomers every day, thank goodness, so don't get your hopes up."

"Glory-hoggers," I heard Mom groan as she walked towards the two of us. She was limping now, the wound on her leg now bleeding. I ran to her.

"Mom, you're hurt!" I yelled. She opened her visor and looked at me, my visor now open as well.

"I told you I'll be fine," she said, smiling. "Haven't I told you I've had worse than this before?"

"Yeah, but..."

We were interrupted by the sudden arrival of Nene and Sylia. _Oh, perfect timing, you guys_, I thought sarcastically, rolling my eyes.

"Ah, you already killed it?" Nene asked, as if she didn't believe it.

"Sure did," I said.

"And you're an amateur at this too." She shook her head. "It MUST run in the family or something." Mom and I laughed.

"Good job, all of you," Sylia said. "Let's get out of here before the police show up."

"Hold it," I said, stepping in front of her. "Why were you and Nene late? We coulda used you guys here!"

"Had to stop some crazy reporters from following the Boomer," Nene cut in.

"Oh." How nuts could people get? _Ah well, not as crazy as me, _I thought with a laugh. _Not only did I go after the Boomer...I killed it too!!_

* * *

I stretched in bed, yawning as I woke up to greet a new day. Seemed like that fight had just been a crazy dream, but no, it wasn't. The newspaper reminded me of that.

"KNIGHT SABERS RIDE AGAIN", the headline said. On the front page, there was a picture of the Boomer I'd scrapped, as well as the "Knight Sabers" insignia Nene had burned into the ground like she would come to do after every battle. I showed it to Mom, who just scanned the page and set it down on the table.

"Great, now it looks like reporters will be chasing us for more than one reason," she joked, leaning back in her chair.

"How's your leg?" I asked, pointing to her left leg, which was wrapped in a bandage.

"Feels ok," she said.

"I was really worried about you back there, ya know," I said.

"Well, you don't have to worry every time I get a little scratch, ok? Just worry about killing the Boomer before it kills you."

"Little...scratch?" Mom had needed fifteen stitches to close that wound, and she was calling it a scratch? Oh well, I suppose I'd have to get used to it, cuz she'd probably be saying that about everything...

Someone knocked on the door. I got up to answer it and lo and behold, there were -- surprise! -- reporters standing there, with cameras in hand.

"Excuse me, Yumeko," one of the reporters said, "is your mother here?"

"Yeah, she's here," I said, annoyed. "Whaddaya want now?"

"Just need to ask her a few things about her upcoming world tour."

"That's not for another six months, so don't ask about it until then, ok?"

"But..."

"No comment," I said, slamming the door in his face and walking back to the kitchen.

"Lemme guess," Mom said. "Reporters."

"Yup," I said, nodding. "Some things never change."

She sighed. "Tell me about it."


End file.
